This international conference aims to bring together academics, experts and linguists to share knowledge and research findings on the vitality of language and culture from different related perspectives.

Introduction:

The great number of languages and cultures of the world have experienced or are undergoing different rates of vitality in their growth and development. Most of these are thriving within their own localities or regions while a few are at the top of the scale of vitality having made an impact on the language and cultural behaviour of peoples in communities outside their geolinguistic and geocultural world. Some languages and cultures are not that fortunate, yet are striving towards increasing their vitality in an effort to claim a place in the history of humanity. Longevity and continual growth of a particular language and culture come with the community that practices and sustains them. Hence, the history of a people is encapsulated in its language and culture.

Objectives:

This conference aims to examine the following issues/factors which may contribute to the vitality or endangerment of language and culture, as follows:

- To what extent does the use of language and practice of culture through the generations ensure its vitality, without the support of other institutions in the community, especially those governed by official policies?- Throughout the greater part of the history of mankind, and until today, language and culture have survived without the support of official institutions. Is this still pertinent in the post-modern world where communication is at one’s fingertips?- Can minor languages and cultures which are actively used and practised within their own communities survive despite globalisation?- Does socio-economic survival in a competitive world have a negative effect on the vitality of a community’s language and culture?- In the globalisation proses of the present age, can it be possible that a community’s language may adopt a different path from its culture?

We aim to promote an understanding of the vitality and preservation of language and culture in the contexts of this modern world. We hope that the conference will serve as a platform for the exchange of knowledge, ideas and research findings that relate to the use of the language and the practice of culture in their respective communities. We hope presenters will explore and examine the richness of the language and culture as well as the work that goes on to preserve them. The conference looks forward to the practical applications and implications of vitality invarious social and linguistic issues that would be of both global and local concerns.